Oceans
by xXBalorBabeXx
Summary: She could always calm herself down by watching the water... so why did Sachael feel like she was drowning this time? (Co-written with Cry-Of-A-Warp-Engine)
1. Trust Me

_Their night at the bar had escalated across the last couple hours. _

_They'd entered the hotel bar just wanting a friendly break, they'd left barely able to keep their contact apart. Seth Rollins was still halfway shocked that this was actually happening, Sachael was still fuzzy on what exactly they were doing, but as they left the elevator and went straight into Sachael's room with their lips barely pausing to draw breath, the two knew what they wanted to do._

_Or more accurately, Sachael knew what she wanted to feel and Seth knew what to do to make her feel it._

_As the two went down on the bed, or rather Sachael pushed Seth down and followed on top of him, that Seth stopped her a few seconds later. "Sach, don't you think I should… you know, wrap up?"_

_Sachael processed it for a moment before nodding and climbing off of him. "Yeah, good idea." She stood up a few paces away from the bed as Seth reached for his wallet, looking up midway through removing his pants. Sachael had her back to him while pulling down the zip on her back, after which the sleeves slid off her shoulders and down her arms, the dress ending up a mess of dark blue and black stitching on the floor._

_Once back in the bed, the two had begun the kissing again, slower this time, more soft._

_Relaxing. That's what Sachael felt it to be._

_She could have stayed like that and been happy the whole night, that was until the moment came when Seth moved forward towards her and her almost sleepy looking eyes narrowed with a hiss from her mouth, eyes then looking up at Seth's as he glanced down at their connection for a moment, then back up at her._

"_I'm… shit, I didn't realise-"_

"_It's okay…" She paused as Seth's right hand lightly cupped over her left cheek and neck. "...I'll live."_

"_Okay…" Seth had to do some quick thinking on the spot, never having known that Sachael was lacking any past experience in this field. _

_He thought of it as if someone with no past knowledge of any fighting styles or maneuvers had just been thrown into the ring with a champion on her part, and tried to think of how he'd handle such a situation. The only thing he'd come up with would be to call off the match and train the person first, but cutting off this moment would kill the entire evening._

_So if it had to be done? If the show had to happen no matter what?_

"_Sacha…" His hand moved down and lightly clasped around hers. "...Trust me?"_

"_Yeah… yeah, I do." Sachael answered, before Seth adjusted his position slightly. "I love you…" She spoke the words quietly, bringing his eyes to hers again. "Do you?"_

"_Yeah… I love you too." Seth answered, halfway to a whisper himself. Then he moved. More so than before. A lot more._

_The hand around his seemed to be attempting to clamp shut through his palm, that or to crush it._

"_Sacha-"_

"_AH!"_

Stood on mildly shaky legs the next morning, Sachael stared out of the window in the side of the high rise hotel building she was within. It was still a bit early in the morning, a light smog over the city, shining silver in the sunlight. She gazed out there so long she overdid the water she was pouring into the soil around her small potted Camelia Sinensis shrub, muttering under her breath as it spilled over the sides and into the dish underneath it.

She'd woken up to find Seth gone, a note on the pillow on his side of the bed saying he'd _'G__one_ _to the_ _gym for a few hours'_. She'd crushed the note in her hand and thrown it across the room, didn't know why.

None of this made any sense to her. Why had she crushed the note, did she just reject Seth?

Why was she so distracted?

Why did she still ache several hours later?

She thought on it… some air, that was what she needed. The fog would bring a crisp clean feel to the air in her lungs. She headed to get dressed, but stopped as she went for her selection. She'd always liked to have bright colours here and there, contrasting and vibrant. But right now, for reasons she couldn't work out…

She left the hotel building a short while later, dark blue pants and jacket with a grey top being her eventual attire. Far from her usual style, she blended in with anyone else at the moment. For a while, she wandered through the streets without aim, lost in her own head, finally coming to the beach. Usually packed with tourists this time of year, in the early morning it was mostly empty, the only other people in sight being a group further down the shore getting suited up in wetsuits ready to head out on an early scuba trip, their small boat anchored against the sea defence wall. Sachael wished she could join them, out there under the waves. Even just for a moment, just a second away from the rest of the world to relax herself properly.

She stood on the edge of the shore, skimming a few pebbles over the water while watching the divers heading to their ship, then watched the boat pull up anchor and disappear towards the horizon. Before she knew it, an hour had passed and the sun had risen fully.

What was she doing with herself now? Spending over an hour staring at scuba divers on an empty beach? Sachael turned finally and started to walk back towards the roads, about halfway from the beach to the street when something hit her, a sharp pain followed quickly by a deep aching. She almost fell over, if there hadn't been an old tree about ten feet from where she was, she would have.

"Damn…" She hissed, hand on her abdomen where the epicenter of the pain seemed to be. She didn't want to stay here another hour waiting for this to subside, so reached up and snapped an old twisty branch from the tree, at about a good length to act as a walking aid as she limped her way back towards the roads. She left the beach area and made it about another block before the ache spiked up again, too much for her to keep going.

Managing to cross the street to the edge of the next block, she carefully sat against a low wall, groaning a curse as she did so. She couldn't go on like this, not on her own. She needed some help here. Getting her phone out, though believing she'd lost it at first before realising it was in the opposite pocket to usual, she dialed quickly. There was no one else who came to mind at this moment than the help of her best and oldest friend.

"Sachael, hey… bit early to be calling, what's up?" Amanda greeted her after picking up the phone, having just got done getting her morning coffee and going to meet up with Finn.

Sachael sat forward a bit, a slight wheezing sound squeaking from her mouth as she moved the air through her lungs to speak. "M-Mandy… I'm gonna need a little help…"

"Where are you?!" Amanda asked, turning frantic.

"Block away from the beach… across the junction from a shut down nightclub, I think… I can barely stand here." Sachael answered, glancing across to what she believed to be the old nightclub, the brightly coloured walls seemed to give that impression.

The two hung up and Amanda threw her coffee aside, running through traffic as the drivers blared their horns and cursed at her… but she didn't care.

She caught Sachael in her arms and dialed 911, explaining what she knew.

But it didn't ease her panic.


	2. Not So Easy As It Sounds

Amanda waited in the ER when she heard footsteps and stood up, seeing Seth.

"The hell are you doing here, Rollins?!" The 25 year old asked.

"Dean said that people saw you run through traffic earlier, are you alright?!" Seth responded, Amanda not wanting to see him right now.

"I'm fine but a friend of mine isn't and I'm waiting to hear back from the doctor checking on her." Amanda explained before she turned away... and Seth gently turned her to him.

"Friend of yours… Sachael?" Seth questioned, eyes narrowing slightly as similar concern to Amanda's began to run through him as well.

"How the hell…" Amanda started to ask… before the realisation hit her and Seth saw her temper start to emerge, Seth backing away a few steps.

"Now just stay calm, Mandy. We met a few times across the shows and trips, we both decided to unwind at the bar last night and… I was too rough on her, that's what happened. I didn't know, she's so confident with things, she wasn't nervous about dates and such to the point where I just thought 'there's no way this girl has never done this before'." Seth explained, glancing up towards the doors at the end.

"You son of a bitch-" Amanda responded angrily as she charged at Seth, only to be grabbed around her waist… and turning to see Finn, having called him 10 minutes ago and he turned her to him, trying to keep her attention off of Seth for now.

"Calm down, Darlin'. He's not worth getting in trouble over." Finn replied.

"My childhood friend is in that room because he was too rough!" Amanda responded, Finn lightly rubbing her shoulders.

"Well… I want her to be okay too." Seth spoke, looking at the two of them after standing up from the chairs. "I'll talk to her, when she's done being checked out. I'll… go get us drinks or something." He said before turning towards the corridor, heading towards the small convenience store that was built into the other side of the hospital.

Amanda was still shaking and Finn pulled her into his arms, the two embracing each other.

"I was this close to wrapping my hands around his neck and breaking it!" Amanda responded.

"She never saw you hurting after your first time, did she?" Finn asked.

"No… I was in Toronto at the time and could barely walk for two days. Doesn't help that I was 16 and so sure I was ready." Amanda replied.

"She's held on for so long, waiting for the right person I'd assume… and all it took was one evening and a couple drinks… talk about sod's law." Finn responded, glancing at Amanda after the more Irish term at the end. "The way the world is so fucked at times, across the pond phrase."

"This world is fucked up. She held on and thought she found someone gentle and I was young and in over my head… only difference is that I wasn't treated gently even after that, Randy used to slap me if he felt like I was trying to take his dominance away." Amanda replied, resting her head on Finn's right shoulder after they sat down. "How he was to me made me feel scared to try to find any man who wouldn't hurt me… Finn, you're one of the ones who's never hurt me." She responded as his arms wrapped around her.

Opening her eyes, Sachael looked around the room… and pulled herself up, knowing that the hospital had pulled their 'family only' policy on Amanda to keep her out of the room.

And Sachael pulled herself up and limped out into the waiting room, Amanda standing up and running to her before the two hugged for a few seconds as Seth returned to the area… and set the coffee aside.

"Sachael… you alright?" Seth asked.

Sachael looked at Amanda for a moment as she thought before turning around to face him.

"I have no idea, honestly." Sachael answered, Amanda a bit startled by the seemingly instant change of emotion she displayed.

The moment she turned around, she'd gone from quiet and nervous to cheerful, wide eyed and almost a tiny bit wacky.

And what was even more strange about it was to Amanda's memory, Sachael had never been an on the spot actor before now, what she felt had always been what she'd show.

"It's a bit to adjust to… physically and mentally." Seth replied, Sachael nodding.

"I know. That's why I've no idea. Strange thing is, I kinda like this. I don't know who I am, I could be anyone right now. I could jump on a stand-up comedy stage or I could sit at an office job for days on end, I literally have no idea…" Sachael spoke, rambling on a bit and mostly confusing the lot of them. Then she turned around and looked at Amanda for a moment… and something clicked. For a brief moment she could think like she would normally do and she turned as confused as the rest of them. "Hang on… what the hell am I doing? You!" She turned around and grabbed Seth by his wrist, dragging him down the hall a bit away from Amanda and Finn.

"Well… I've seen people change but that's… new." Finn spoke after a moment of silence.

"I'm worried that she might've hit her head." Amanda responded.

"Hey, calm down a second!" Seth spoke up, Sachael releasing his wrist and standing in front of him.

"I'll tell you exactly what's going on, and I'll do it here so as to not terrify my friend…" Sachael responded before stepping back a couple paces. "Right now I almost feel like I've got two minds in one head telling me what to do, one is the mind I've always had and the other… we created another Sachael last night, you and me, and I've no idea who the hell this Sachael is… I really don't understand myself anymore. So… physically, I'll manage. Mentally… I guess put it to the back of the thought trail and I'll get back to you on it."

"Did someone put the wrong meds in your IV?" Seth asked.

"No but I'm just as confused as you as well as my old friend and her friend." Sachael responded.

"Yeah, something ain't right here." Amanda replied quietly, ignoring her chiming LG G Stylo.

But the third time it chimed, she grabbed it out of her wallet and saw a text from John, who had found out about her running through traffic.

_'I thought I taught you to respect the traffic laws!'_

_'John, that had to be ignored, Sachael was hurting! She called me so I found her and we're at the ER… and now I'm worried because of her sudden cheerful behavior, it ain't like her at all.' _Amanda responded, Sachael glancing at her.

"So much for not worrying…" Sachael replied before turning back to Seth. "When was the last time Mandy wasn't stressed?" She asked.

"I… don't think I remember, honestly." Seth answered. "I guess it's part of the lifestyle."

"And I feel like I should remember… but I can't… I can't remember why I came here. Not the hospital, I mean… with you lot. I never did before." Sachael responded, before looking at Amanda. "I feel like… I want to say I wanted to… run?"

"She probably felt that way too… I didn't know her back then." Seth replied.

Sachael thought back, trying to remember.

And a fractured memory from the past few days slowly pieced itself together.


	3. Work Related Stress?

_**Two days ago, August 23rd 2015… **_

_Sachael's head snapped up from the middle seat, startled to hear Amanda cussing._

"_Are you alright, kiddo?" Sachael asked._

"_A co-worker is being a jackass again." Amanda responded._

"_Mandy, watch the mouth." Finn replied._

"_You cuss too, mister!" Amanda responded, playfully swatting Finn's right shoulder… and a car horn blaring. "Wait for the fucking turn signal, asshole!" She yelled at the other driver, Sachael snickering._

"_This is normal for her, right?" Sachael asked._

"_She's venting out her stress, they won't let us swear on Tv most of the time." Finn explained as Amanda looked at her phone and saw a text from Seth._

'_Tell Balor to watch his driving, he cut me off two traffic lights ago!'_

_Amanda rolled her eyes and Sachael saw the text._

"_Ran into him a couple times I think. Is he always as short fused?" Sachael asked._

"_He can be, especially when I don't spend as much time with him as I used to." Amanda answered, Sachael looking at Finn._

"_He doesn't like you being around her, right?" Sachael questioned._

"_Seth treats me like I stole Mandy from him." Finn replied as the traffic was moving again._

_Sachael felt that jealousy couldn't just be the sole reason… and at the Barclays Centre, she found Seth and pulled him aside._

"_What's on your mind?" Seth asked._

"_A bit of advice, cut Mandy some slack and tell her why you're upset. No matter what choices she makes, they're hers to make and Finn has no bad intentions with her. You don't have to be short fused." Sachael explained._

"_Short fused, what gave you that impression that I'm like that with her?" Seth responded._

"_Claiming that Finn cut you off in traffic when he didn't." Sachael replied before she left._

_And she was beginning to think Seth wasn't dealing with his anger in the right way…_

**Present time**_**, August 25th 2015…**_

_Policy Of Truth (Trancental Version) _by Depeche Mode played through Amanda's rose gold earbuds as she tried to switch her mindset to the event… Sachael had left with Seth and Amanda knew she couldn't talk her out of it.

And then Amanda felt Finn's arms wrap around her waist, his head resting on her right shoulder as Amanda took her earbuds out before closing out YouTube Music and putting her phone and earbuds aside.

"You're stressing again…" Finn replied.

"I'm worried about Sachael…" Amanda responded.

"Worried that Seth will hurt her… and given how he's been lately, you have every right to be worried. Sachael's your older sister in every way that counts." Finn replied.

"And she's not herself now." Amanda responded as Finn lightly kissed her on the right side of her head and moved his hands to her shoulders and back after getting her to lie down, Finn massaging Amanda… and Amanda letting out a contented noise. "Lower, please?" She managed to ask, Finn moving his hands to her lower back and continuing with the massage… and he had to put himself on the couch to do so, bracing himself on his knees.

"You're all tensed up, Darlin'." Finn replied.

"I just hope he doesn't do anything stupid… he breaks her heart, I'll snap his neck." Amanda responded.

"Hopefully he won't mess up… he's already messed up twice with Leighla and Zahra." Finn replied.

"That's why I'm worried, Sachael is completely different from them." Amanda responded as Finn got her to turn to him and cradled her face in his hands.

But before he could speak again, the door was opened and Samoa Joe's eyes widened.

"Okay, lock the door if you two are gonna get hot and heavy!" Joe responded before he left, slamming the door… and Finn looked at Amanda, who was still underneath him.

"I guess this could be seen as a compromising position." Finn replied with a playful smirk, Amanda lightly swatting his right hip.

"We've gotta get ready for the taping, get off of me." Amanda responded.

"What if I don't want to?" Finn asked before he tickled Amanda and made her laugh.

And Amanda knew that Finn would always help her relax.

_**NXT Taping set to air September 9th 2015, Balor/Joe vs Lucha Dragons… **_

The collision was accidental as Sin Cara stood up, Finn immediately noticing that Amanda was down and checking on her.

"Mandy, you okay?!" Finn asked, his hands on her face and thumbs brushing back and forth as Amanda looked up at him.

"I'm alright, that just… startled me." Amanda responded as Finn helped her sit up and stand up, Finn resting his right hand on Amanda's face and his left hand on her back.

In the backstage area, Sachael and Dianne looked at each other.

"She's trying to hide an injury…" Sachael responded, seeing Amanda tense up and cringe when Finn touched her back.

"Doc, get over here!" Finn replied quietly, Dr. Amann reaching them and helping Amanda to the back… which left Joe in a 2 on 1 handicap match.

He had won though and reached the backstage area, only for Sachael to prevent him from reaching the trainer's office.

"Cool off before you go in there to check on her!" Sachael responded.

"Sachael, they left me out there!" Joe replied angrily.

"Finn decided that Mandy's health was more important, okay?! Calm your ass down, Joe!" Sachael responded.

Finn held onto Amanda's right hand as Dr. Amann examined her back… and when he touched her tailbone, she yelled out in pain and tried to hit him but Finn stopped her as Sachael ran in.

"Mandy, trying to hit a doctor won't help things." Sachael replied.

"I've dealt with worse, don't worry. Though I'm worried she might have a broken tailbone." Dr. Amann explained as Seth ran in.

"How is she?!" Seth asked.

"Too many people in here, Mandy's gonna feel crowded! Sachael, you can stay and I'm not going anywhere either so Seth, beat it!" Finn responded, Seth startled at that.

But not wanting to let Sachael see his temper, Seth walked into the hallway… and Finn lightly rubbed Amanda's upper back.

"Sorry if I seemed a little aggressive there, he tends to upset her and stress her out." Finn explained after turning to Sachael.

"A lot of your co-workers disagree with you two being around each other?" Sachael asked.

"Most are cautious about it, others get angry. The reason most are cautious is because my exes were assholes at times." Amanda explained, Sachael seeing part of the scar below her right shoulder blade as the rest was hidden by Amanda's tank top.

"Some people just don't know how to respect their significant other…" Sachael responded, her and Amanda hugging for a few seconds.

"After what happened earlier… are you alright?" Amanda asked once an ice pack was on her injured back.

"Well… sorta. Calmer but… I'm still between two minds. Fortunately, I think the other one is currently unconscious." Sachael answered, though Amanda could see she was still a bit unsteady on her feet. "Exam results came in… nerve shock to the lower body, most likely... because of his sudden move."

Amanda cringed slightly, Sachael lightly rubbing her right shoulder.

"You went through that… how old were you?" Sachael asked.

"16. I didn't know what the hell was happening to me." Amanda responded.

"Yeah… it does that." Sachael replied quietly, a flash of this 'second personality' coming through.

It was after being examined at an ER that they were back at the hotel… and Finn looked at Amanda, who was fighting sleep.

"Mind on too many things at once…" Finn responded.

"Even without me saying anything, you always know why I can't unwind. I want to call Immy and ask her for advice about what Sachael's feeling with both sides of her but Immy's probably sleeping now… wouldn't be right to wake her." Amanda replied with a tired smile as her right hand was in Finn's left one.

"I think she'll figure herself out. Given time, we all have to once or twice throughout life." Finn responded, looking past Amanda towards the window as it had started to lightly rain outside.

"Summer rain again…" Amanda replied, Finn readjusting the blankets over her and himself before their eyes closed.

Sachael hadn't expected Seth to find her but they had started talking… and his eyes widened.

"She was that young?!" Seth responded.

"Imagine my shock when I found out…" Sachael replied.

"No wonder she wasn't so mad at you for what happened, it would've made her a bit of a hypocrite." Seth responded, glancing up at the TV in the lounge as it was on a channel showing music videos for country music, just as background noise in the room.

"It was worry, Mandy has always put others before herself." Sachael replied as she started feeling sleepy.

"I think… a night's sleep will help you figure things out. I can tell you're still in a… mental battle." Seth said as he stood up, turning back to her once he had.

"Maybe that's why I… released myself to you. You know me already." Sachael replied before Seth helped her up.

Once they were in her room, Seth helped her into the bed after she got ready to go to sleep… and he decided to stay.

But neither had no idea what was waiting.


	4. Truth Slips Out

_Looking around, Sachael wasn't quite sure where she'd ended up. It wasn't like a real place, more seeing things with a sudden extreme self-awareness. As for what this 'place' looked like, the best way she could recognise it was a forest of willow trees, each one with hundreds of long strands flowing to the ground. Except that the strands seemed to be glowing with light, all of them different colours. _

_She ventured forward slowly, though the forest seemed to fly by a thousand miles far with just one step. Suddenly she was at two much larger trees, both shining like the others but all silver in colour._

"_Hello Sachael. Ready to get to work? There's a lot to be done here." She turned around quickly, to see herself stood there, though somehow different. Her attire was the first thing different, while Sachael herself was wearing bright colours as she usually liked to do, this 'mirror' was wearing darker colours, brown leather and black skinny pants, things she'd never normally go near._

"_Is this… did I die? Is this the afterlife, are you judging me? My judgement- look, I really didn't mean to get that cat trapped in the shed when I was 13-" Sachael started to question._

"_Yes Sachael, you are dead. Everything you ever believed was wrong, there is a God and he's very pissed off with you." The second Sachael spoke, the first backing up a step with a half confused, half worried expression… then the second broke into laughter. "I'm sorry, I just had to see your face when you were told that!"_

"_Wait, so… is there really a God?" Sachael asked, still confused as to what was going on._

"_Well, you're still alive so technically… who knows? You just asleep. We're just asleep. This…" The second answered, extending her arms outwards. "...is our mind. And right now, it's very stressed. See those trees? Shouldn't be two, two of us in the same mind isn't gonna work without us going mad so… we need to merge."_

"_Merge… you mean… both of us become one? That would… change me, right? But… I don't want to change, I was always happy as I am!" Sachael replied, the darker one stepping forward._

"_You can't, it's already starting, it did the moment you dropped your innocence for Seth, I was created… well I say created, more like released, the moment that happened. Now we have a choice. We both change, we work together… or we stay split and go to madness as we are." The second Sachael explained, the first looking down and then around the forest of her mind as she considered it._

"_Okay… I get it. Where do we start?" The original answered after a few moments. The new one raised her left hand and clicked her fingers, the two trees suddenly shattering apart._

"_Let's build a new tree."_

Waking up once again to foggy streets outside, Seth looked up and around, finding Sachael no longer laid beside him as she had been when he'd climbed alongside her an hour and a bit after she fell asleep herself. Instead, he found her by the window, right hand under her left elbow as she gazed down at the streets below.

"Hey… you okay there?" Seth asked quietly, shifting across the bed to sit on the side across from which Sachael was stood. She turned around after hearing him speak, Seth turning startled as he saw that tears had run down her cheeks.

"I don't even know why I'm crying, why am I doing that now?" Sachael responded quietly, reddened and bloodshot eyes looking at him.

"I think you're finally processing it." Seth replied as he stood up and walked to her, the two hugging each other.

"Maybe… I think… who I was, I… don't want to go." Sachael responded, closing her eyes afterwards.

Seth picked her up into his arms and put her in the bed, lightly rubbing her back.

At the same time, Finn opened his eyes… but it was to Amanda unintentionally digging her fingers into his shirt and Finn knew it was from the pain and held her, Amanda opening her eyes.

She looked around, startled… and Finn got her to look at him, feeling how badly she was shaking.

"Where is she? Something's wrong, I can…" Amanda responded, Finn lightly brushing her tears away.

"She's in the hotel still, and she's with Seth… it's a moment of forced trust here, that he's taking care of her." Finn answered, pulling her closer towards him.

"I've got that feeling that something's gonna happen that'll hurt her." Amanda replied, burying her head into Finn's right shoulder as they held each other… and Amanda's phone rang, her picking it up and answering it. "Immy, good morning." She responded, Immy noticing the shakiness in her voice.

"Mandy, what's wrong?" Immy asked.

"Sachael's not herself… after she had hooked up with someone, she's gotten this new side to her." Amanda explained, Immy turning startled at that.

"Well it's natural that some people change but… if you're so worried then it's more than just a dulled down innocence that's different in her." Immy responded.

"Maybe. I wasn't like that after because what I was feeling was more physical than emotional." Amanda replied.

"Seems like it's hit her mind a lot. She's a lot later than us… no offence mean by it but it seems to me like innocence meant more to her than it did to you or I." Immy responded after a moment of thinking it over.

"Yeah, true… I had already been thrown into a world where things like this were second nature." Amanda replied, trying to sit up but Immy her "Ow, son of a bitch!" slip out of her mouth and Finn helped Amanda lie onto her side.

"When Sin Cara crashed onto her and me, Mandy landed wrong and broke her tailbone." Finn explained, Immy letting out a sympathetic yell.

"When will people in your profession learn to be careful?!" Immy responded.

"You've been watching how Alexa is in her matches, haven't you?" Amanda asked.

"I have… and for advice, keep an eye not only on Sachael but whoever it was that she was with and watch for anything that you'd consider a red flag. And take it easy with that back." Immy replied before they hung up.

_**September 8th 2015…**_

Amanda walked into the hotel… and her eyes narrowed when she saw Seth and Zahra.

And Seth saw her walk towards the elevator, knowing she was going to find Sachael.

Without a second glance at Zahra, Seth took off down the hallway.


	5. Actions & Consequences

Amanda had exited the elevator on the 3rd floor when Seth grabbed her from behind and she fought back against him as he dragged her into the stairwell… and pushed him off.

"Get off of me! Barely two weeks and you're already going back to your ex?!" Amanda responded angrily, Seth grabbing her when she tried to leave and throwing her against the wall in the hallway in anger… and Amanda feeling her face hit the wall she fell to the ground.

But in his enraged state, Seth didn't care and grabbed her by her hair to force her to look at him.

"Hurt me all you want, won't stop me from telling her the truth!" Amanda growled… and after hearing that, Seth snapped out of his rage and Amanda made sure her nose was still in place… to her surprise, it wasn't even broken.

"Well you're a bit late about getting to me first." The two heard, finding that Sachael was stood outside her room door just across from them.

Amanda stood up and Sachael saw her scraped knees… and looked at Seth.

"Is this how you act when she tries to explain the truth?!" Sachael asked angrily, pulling Amanda into a hug.

"_Hey, calm it down!" The newer of the two Sachaels said as the original was fuming with rage, both at what Seth had done with Zahra and to Amanda._

"_Calm down?! Fucking look at her!"_

"_Listen, you don't need to be so angry-"_

"_I AM ANGRY! HE ASSAULTED MY FUCKING SISTER!" _

_As the original one yelled in response, she'd swung her hand out without thinking… and had punched the tree which the two had almost finished constructing, sending numerous deep and wide cracks splitting up the trunk and along the twisting roots. _

_She stopped, looking at the tree… she'd lashed out in response to part of her wanting to do something different, in the process causing effect to no one but herself._

_Sachael may not have finished her mind merging yet but one thing was certain, she wasn't about to make a habit of hurting herself because she didn't like another part of herself. She could already feel the damage spreading throughout the tree and through its roots, to the forest itself._

"_What do we do?"_

_The second Sachael thought for a moment before looking up and answering. "We need out of here. Whatever it takes, we go now."_

"_I think you'd be better at that." _

"Now…" Sachael spoke as she loosened the grip on Amanda. "Seth… what was that night to you? I don't think you had any intention of staying around at all, until you found out _'Whoops, I just became this chick's first.'_, did you? It was only sex, nothing more."

Amanda stepped back a bit, looking at Sachael… all of a sudden, Amanda looked at her and she felt almost as if she knew nothing about her, as if this were a completely different person.

"Sachael… look, I'm-" Seth started to say.

"I don't need a fucking on the spot thought up apology with no heart behind it!" Sachael shouted, cutting him off.

Amanda limped away in fright… and the second elevator opened and Finn's eyes widened and he ran to her, holding her upright.

"Mandy, what happened, Darlin'?" Finn asked, seeing the bruises and blood.

Amanda pointed to where Seth and Sachael were… and Finn saw some strands of Amanda's chestnut hair in Seth's right hand, Finn grabbing his IPhone 6 and dialing 911 as Seth stormed off without glancing back at Sachael after she had told him to never hurt Amanda again.

"Yes, I need the police and an ambulance at the Mohegan Sun Pocono. My friend was assaulted, she can barely stand up now…" Finn responded to the dispatcher as Sachael walked over, Finn holding Amanda closer to him as she felt the adrenaline wearing off and pain fully hitting her. "I can tell you don't like someone involving the law but look at her…" He replied, Sachael examining Amanda's face.

"I know, that's why I didn't hit the phone away-" Sachael responded, before turning as she heard someone coming towards them. "-careful, you see these eyebrows? They're attack eyebrows!"

Hunter's eyes widened when he saw Amanda… and tried to reach out to her, Amanda hanging onto Finn and burying her face into his left shoulder as Finn held her.

"Who did this to her?" Hunter asked quietly after turning to Sachael.

"One of your other employees. You might want to consider suspending Seth or putting him in anger management." Sachael explained, Finn getting Amanda to look at him as she was still shaking and quiet as her right hand was in his left one.

The hand holding was something that the two often did when one of them didn't feel safe enough to be alone… and Finn kept his right arm around Amanda's back.

"Has this… happened before? The two of them just seeking comfort in each other?" Sachael asked after turning to Hunter.

"It's what brought them together. Two that just naturally find calm after chaos within each other." Hunter answered, looking at her afterwards. "You know anyone like that?"

"I thought I did…" Sachael answered, her original self returning for a brief moment. "I should've known though, not to put that sort of trust into Seth. He just… knew how to talk to me."

At the ER, Amanda had been examined and Finn got her to look at him.

"I should've trusted my initial instincts but I let him get close to her… the hell is wrong with me, why didn't I tell her that he's pulled this before. I should've but I didn't… and now she's hurting." Amanda replied, Finn lightly rubbing her back and holding her close to him.

"Maybe heartbreak is something we all just have to experience on our own. Everyone does at some point in their lives." Finn responded after a few moments, glancing out of the window where he could just about see Sachael's small yellow car across the parking lot.

"I should've told her… I'm a bad friend." Amanda replied.

"Hey, you are not a bad friend, Darlin'. You just didn't want to upset her, you were trying to help her." Finn responded at the same time they heard footsteps and saw Dianne and Enzo, both sets of eyes widening when they saw Amanda.

"I told you that those police officers are looking for someone who committed aggravated assault!" Dianne replied after swatting Enzo's right shoulder.

"They haven't found Seth yet?" Finn asked, Dianne turning incensed.

"He's flipped his lid again?! What's his excuse this time?!" Dianne responded.

"He didn't want Mandy telling me the truth on what he's really like." Sachael explained after walking in, Dianne turning to her.

And she knew it was true.

_**September 10th 2015, NXT Taping set to air September 30th 2015…**_

Amanda noticed Sachael turn aggravated when Amanda and Finn hugged… and a part of her felt like Sachael was being antagonistic towards Finn and, on a subconscious level, jealous of Finn and Amanda's closeness since the incident at the hotel.

_'No, that's your sister. Don't think like that.' _Amanda thought.

Noticing how quiet she was, Finn guided Amanda to their locker room as Dianne and Sachael continued talking.

"What's going on in that mind of yours, Darlin'?" Finn asked.

"Maybe I'm just overthinking it but… I can't help but feel like Sachael being silent at times and the aggravated looks whenever you and I are around each other that she's upset that things didn't work out with her and Seth and is taking it out at us." Amanda explained as Finn noticed that she had used the orange corrector concealer under her regular concealer to not only hide the bruises but the blue toned under eye circles under her eyes.

And he knew that the pain from her recent injuries were waking her up at night… and Finn held her closer to him, the two embracing each other.

Reaching the locker room, Sachael quietly opened the door… and her eyes narrowed as she just as quietly closed it and walked off.

'_Why am I getting aggravated with him?! He's just being a great friend to my little sister.' _Sachael thought.

"Sachael, you okay?" Immy asked once she found her, Sachael looking up.

"That obvious?" Sachael responded as they sat down.

"You're clearly not yourself. Talk to me, tell me what's going on." Immy replied.

"I feel like Mandy and Finn have what I wanted with Seth… even if Mandy and Finn won't admit that things between them are changing." Sachael explained.

"Did you go to tell her?" Immy asked.

"I don't want to seem jealous or envious to her." Sachael responded.

"She's our family. And he's a good man to her." Immy replied.

"He is." Sachael responded.

She knew she had to tell Amanda at some point.


	6. Crashing Down

_**A/N: Got over writer's block with this chapter.**_

_**A/N 2: Song listened to while finishing the chapter is Let Her Cry by Hootie & The Blowfish.**_

_**WWE Fastlane 2015, after six man tag…**_

_"Hey… that was great out there." Seth heard, seeing Amanda… she reached out to hug him but stopped when he lightly pressed his fingers into her collarbone. "Okay, that's not like you at all… what's going on here, Seth?" The 24 year old responded as she was confused._

_"Nothing." Seth answered and turned to leave… he reached the edge of the hallway when he heard "You know, I'm getting really sick of this, Rollins!" and turned back, walking to Amanda._

_"What did you just say to me?!" Seth demanded._

_"Lately, you've treated me like we barely know each other… and you might not care but that hurts me, Seth. What did I do wrong, why don't you want anything to do with me anymore?" Amanda responded, Seth slamming the Money In The Bank briefcase down in rage and muttering a name under his breath… but Amanda heard it. "He is my friend but the Demon King and Demon Mistress thing, it's just a storyline, Seth. Just like The Shield splitting apart was for the cameras, it shouldn't affect us backstage." She said before he turned back to her._

_"Well it does! Before we know it, you'll be in the same bed and room, you'll be walking out into the arena hand in hand, leg up and lips together and it will be far from 'just an act'!" Seth said._

_Amanda punched him hard after and was about to hit him again but was restrained and turned to see her old friend Joey Mercury._

_"Both of you calm down." Joey responded, trying to keep the peace between the two._

_"Joey, stay outta this!" Seth snapped at him._

_Amanda pulled herself away from Joey and walked off, Joey turning to Seth._

_"That was low, even for you! Mandy is a damn loyal friend, you idiot! And now you just want to kick her to the side because she's found the kind of happiness she hasn't had in years?!" Joey said._

_"The second I get my loyal friend back, I'll rethink it!" Seth responded before leaving._

_Down the hallway, Amanda pulled her hood of her Balor Club hoodie over her head, wanting to just disappear entirely._

_This was a lot different than NXT but for Finn, it was a good way to learn, watching the main roster matches in person._

_He stopped for a few seconds when he heard sniffling… the parts of chestnut hair sticking out from the hoodie the small woman was wearing was a dead giveaway to him. But in the few months he had known Amanda, he had never seen her this upset and walked over, crouching down and resting his hands on her knees._

_Amanda looked up, brushing her tears away._

_"I feel so stupid… I thought that Seth and I had hit a rough patch in our friendship but that we'd fix it…" Amanda said, her voice croaky. "Why did I even bother trying? He just keeps pushing me away… I called him out on it and things went to hell." She said, Finn pulling her into his arms… out of instinct, her arms wrapped around him and her head rested on his left shoulder._

_"He's the one who's stupid, not you. He doesn't see what this does to you." Finn whispered before he picked Amanda up off the floor and took her to where her locker room was, putting her on the couch._

_He knew this was one of those times where she wished she could drink a glass of whiskey to soothe her nerves._

_"I was also gonna talk to him about tomorrow night's event…" Amanda said, trailing off as she curled her legs up a bit so Finn could sit down. "It wouldn't be the first time in this business that it's happened, storyline relationships turning real off camera… he's acting like I betrayed him." She said quietly, Finn wrapping his arm around her shoulders after she sat up. "I'm just… I'm gonna go tell Hunter what happened and about everything…"_

_Amanda started to stand up but stopped when Finn's left hand wrapped around her right wrist._

_"Whatever happens… between you and me or anyone else, it's none of Seth's business… there's nothing he can do but mouth off about it like a jealous little child." Finn said._

_"Who's gonna believe him anyway?... he needs to get his own life together." Amanda responded, starting to feel calmer._

_"Exactly, and we're far from the only ones who know that." Finn said, Amanda sitting down again. "Times like these… are when we find out who our true friends and companions are." He said as he wrapped his arms around her when both stretched out on the couch, her resting her head on his torso._

_Nothing could beat a bad day away better than a hug…_

**Present time**_**, September 10th 2015… **_

Amanda went wide eyed and cringed when she saw Colin hit his head on the ramp and Finn checking on him before the match continued… and in the back, Aestrid and Sachael saw her distress.

"She cares a lot about her co-workers…" Sachael responded as Enzo helped Amanda up to her feet, having crashed onto her.

"It's a dangerous business." Aestrid replied as they watched the match continue… and Sachael grabbed her Samsung Galaxy S6 when it chimed and turned aggravated to see another text from Seth.

_'Please just talk to me… I really am sorry.'_

"He's a persistent son of a bitch." Aestrid responded, Sachael's only reaction being a nod.

She ignored the text and went back to the monitor… and saw Finn and Amanda embracing each other.

And she was feeling the same way she felt in the hotel hallway.

"_It's not her fault, I know that… so why am I feeling this way?" Sachael responded, the second Sachael turning to her._

"_Us merging isn't going the right way just yet." The second one explained._

"_What is the right way to merge two minds exactly?" Sachael asked sarcastically._

"_Only we can figure that out." The second one responded._

Sachael looked towards the curtain and saw Finn helping Amanda to the backstage area, his right arm around her back… and she could tell that Amanda was trying to pretend she wasn't hurt.

But she was hurting… and Sachael and Aestrid saw how sleep deprived she was.

"You and I need a vacation, Darlin'." Finn responded as he helped Amanda sit down once they were in their locker room.

"What we need is for Seth to drop off the face of the earth." Amanda replied, Finn lightly rubbing her back… and brushed her tears away.

Finn pulled Amanda into a hug as she cried into him, knowing that she felt horrible after the way Seth broke Sachael's heart.

And Finn knew it was best for Amanda to let it all out.


End file.
